2011 electric car incentive details released (UK)

The first details of 2011’s £5k electric car allowance have been released by the Government. Subject to approval from the European Commission, the grant will be available from January 2011 and will fund 25% of the purchase price of a new electric car – up to a maximum of £5,000.

The contribution will be available for fully electric cars, such as the Mitsubishi i-MiEV and the 2011 Nissan Leaf, plug-in electric hybrids such as the Vauxhall/Opel Ampera and hydrogen fuel-cell cars like the Honda FCV.

Anyone wanting to claim the grant, will have to buy a car that meets the following criteria:

• It must be a car – not quad bike-based vehicles such as the G-Wiz.

• Emit a maximum of 75g/km of CO2 if it's a plug-in hybrid

• Have a minimum range of 70 miles as an electric-only vehicle

• Have a minimum battery-powered range of 10 miles if a plug-in hybrid

• Have a three-year or 75,000-mile warranty

• Have a three-year warranty on the battery or a five-year warranty if requested by the customer (presumably at extra cost, although this has not been clarified)

• It must retain ‘a reasonable degree of performance after a three-year period of normal use’. Further definition of this is not given.

As with the scrappage scheme, the discount will be applied at the point of sale, so car buyers won’t have to pay the full amount first and then claim the money back. There is no limit to the number of cars you can buy to receive the cash, and the scheme is open to both private individuals and companies.

A total of £230 million is being put aside by the Government, which is enough for at least 46,000 cars. The scheme will run to 31st March 2014 at the latest and be reviewed after 12 months.

Every manufacturer is looking at electric cars, hybrids and fuel cells, either through in-house development or by collaborating with other companies. Here are some of the cars already here – or in advanced stages of development.

Electric cars already on sale:

Citroen C1 'evie

Fiat Doblo Electrique

G-Wiz (would not qualify for grant)

Mega City (would not qualify for grant)

Mini E – in public trails, no confirmation of production car

Tesla Roadster

Electric cars on the way:

Citroen C-Zero/ Mitsubishi iMiEV/ Peugeot iOn – October 2010

Toyota Prius – trials underway, sales in 2011

Nissan Leaf – March 2011

Renault Twizy – late 2011

BMW Active – 2011

Volvo C30 – two year trial starts in 2011

Audi e-tron – 2012

Renault Zoe – 2012

Smart ED – 2012 (with trials starting in 2011)

Volvo V70 plug-in – 2012

Tesla S – by 2013

Plug-in Hybrids on the way:

Renault Fluence – 2011

Vauxhall/Opel Ampera – 2011